The Dark
by ToxinAngel969
Summary: "So ask yourself this," Slade said sternly as he looked down on the girl with remorse. "Are you afraid of the creatures that torment you? The emptiness that they leave behind?" He chuckled. "Or, like a little child, are you just afraid of the dark?"
1. Games

An uncomfortable atmosphere washed over the city as the unexpected storm clouds rolled over the mountains; and in result, the pedestrians of the city left the streets abandoned, more or less, for their own last-minute reasons to rush back home. There were several meetings that were postponed because one of the members, after looking up at the sky, suddenly remembered that they left something in the oven, and the other members scattered just as quickly. A group of rambunctious teenagers were just preparing to release the rubber band on their slingshot, about to release the water balloon among one of the quickly dispersing crowds loitering on the sidewalk. Then they were overcome by an indescribable form of melancholy before admitting to one another that it was getting late out and bidding each other farewell, heading home as fast as their baggy pants would allow them to.

Eventually, every one of the remaining citizens ceased their daily activities and left the streets unoccupied, a rare sight especially for a bustling city. But there it was, utterly empty and nothing to prove of the people ever being there aside from the few slices of untouched pizza forgotten on the tables next to the snack stand. It remained that way for a minute or two, the bizarre silence creeping its way through the streets, consuming and silencing everything in its path. One would think that the city was vacant, when in reality, the people were cowering deep in their homes with fear, unsure of what was really frightening them. Was it the sudden intrusive feeling that out of nowhere raided the pleasant bustling aura of the city? Or was it the unpredicted storm that rolled over the jagged mountains and dampened the atmosphere in and of itself, as well as surrounded it in a gray eerie haze?

Then the silence was succumbed when the sound of rapid footsteps approached the center of the once crazed metropolis. At first, it was an echo, like that of a creaking, dripping pipe from a ceiling threatening to collapse into itself. After a few long seconds, a figure emerged from the shadows of a vandalized alleyway, bursting from the shadows and refusing to show any signs of slowing down. And as strange as it seemed, it started to rain; at first, a gentle tapping as the fist few fell to the ground, only to intensify to a merciless downpour just as quickly as it had begun. This wasn't all that surprising for the girl, though it did cause her to trip and fall a few times as she desperately tried to flee from what appeared to be nothing. And as she ran, her black hair down and her gray clothing drenched with sweat and blood, the voices came from the shadows surrounding her.

_Don't run._

_Come back!_

_Why are you running?_

_Promise we'll play nice! Honest!_

_Don't make us come out there._

_You don't want us to come out, do you?_

It was at this moment that the shadows in front of her manifested into distorted beings who, after tremendous effort, pried themselves from the darkness and stumbled after her hastily, making quite a traumatizing effect as they tailed behind her. The girl's small hands were clenched into quivering fists, which began to shake not only from the cold but from the fear that crept down her spine; and she could feel it, the monster's eyes penetrating through hers and feeding off of the fear that had no choice but to reveal itself through her unstable, shaky demeanor. She hadn't thought for a second that it was possible, how these creatures effortlessly manipulated the surroundings that pertained to them, and used them against their will.

What these creatures were capable of was beyond any human's apprehension.

Luckily, she wasn't human.

Still, no matter how many times she'd seen their tricks, their illusions, it always scared her into running off, town to town, city to city. It didn't matter where she hid, who she pretended to be, how she blended in - they always found her. It was only a matter of time before they cornered her and took back what was rightfully theirs, which had been undoubtedly stolen and given to her as a gift, or something as sly as the sort.

But none of that mattered; all that mattered to the fifteen-year-old girl was safety, a sanctuary that would fend off these horrifying creatures, at least for now. All she wanted, more than anything, was to rest. To stop for a second, take a deep breath, and regain her esteem and energy before going off into hiding again. But more than this, she wanted reassurance. She wanted other people around her to say, "I see them, I see what they're after, and I have the answers." Again, this was as unlikely as being granted a break. The girl, as the tears ran down her face and blended into the rain that pelted her from high above, wanted more than anything to be reassured that others were seeing these creatures as well, running from them, thinking the same thoughts that she was thinking now. It didn't take long to realize that, no matter how much she prayed for something like this to happen, it wasn't true.

She was the only one facing this.

And as much as she wanted to deny it, she was alone.

It was that moment when she realized that she was running straight toward a dead end, and quickly fumbled around and took to the left, still being chased by the shadow creatures, whose long arms dangled and dragged behind them as their large steps drew closer to her. The girl was breathing heavy now, after all, running for a full half an hour (half of which she was running from nothing) doesn't cope well when you don't get a break. The rain made her torn gray tank top look like a faded black, and the blood seeped through from the cut on her left side of the waist, and for a second, one could see the deep gash through the hole in the back.

One would think that after that long running, her pursuers would've given up and faded back into the shadows they had came from. But no, they had actually sped up, seeing that their target was limping and she was exhausted. It didn't take long for the girl to notice this, and she grabbed nearby trash cans and boxes and toppled them over to block their path. This didn't do any good; they walked right through them. They _were _shadows, after all. The voices grew louder, from harsh whispers to a deafening shouting sound.

_Please don't go!_

_Turn around!_

_We're gonna get you!_

_Don't trip, don't fall now!_

_Look out - we're gonna get you!_

Laughter and taunting echoed in the vacant streets and alleyways, repeating themselves over and over again.

You would think that someone would step outside to see what all of the shouting was about, to see what exactly the girl was running from and maybe even call the authorities to report all of the noisy hullabaloo. But this never happens, you see.

These creatures, these voices, they reside on a different dimension than our own. The reason we all live in harmony is because we cannot see or feel one another, and this is why we still barely hold on today.

But all that is about to change.

The girl looked back once more and glanced at one of the long arms reaching out to her. In a frantic effort to try to escape the creatures once and for all, she flipped all the way around on her heels and, much to the shadow beings' surprise, burst right through them and headed toward the edge of the city, where the city came to an abrupt halt before it led to the body of water that softly edged up along the jagged rocks of the shore bordering the beach. In a swift, sudden movement, the girl got a running start, leaped off of one of the boulders, and cannon-balled into the water. The creatures, after seeing what she had done, let out a howl of disappointment and anger before slinking back into the shadows and allowing themselves to slowly fade back into the background, where they kept a watchful eye on her as she slowly bobbed back up.

After a few minutes of barely poking her eyes over the water and looking around at her surroundings, she weakly swam towards one of the rocks barely prodding out of the water and climbed upon it, resting her stomach on it, soaked to the bone and struggling to regain her breath.

"Going for a swim, are you?" Somebody asked behind her on the shore. The girl flipped around and nearly tumbled back into the water, letting out a squeak of surprise before someone grabbed her by her arm and pulled her on her feet on top of the rock.

"It seems that you are one of the jittery types. Pity," She looked up frantically, praying that if it was a shadow creature, it was dissolving in the water this very second. Luckily it wasn't. Still, it was a tall, odd-looking man in a black suit, a strange mask that had a glossy half black and half golden pattern. It was peculiar, in a creepy sort of way.

"What's your name, child?" he asked in a deep voice, summing her up from head to toe as she shot him a questioning look.

After a quick pause, she responded.

"Y-yours first."

The man chuckled, even though you couldn't necessarily see his face to confirm it. He paced on the wide platform-like rock and spoke to himself, a trait they both seemed to share. "You know how to play your cards right. This will help you further into the future. My name is not of much importance to you; thoroughly speaking, I'm not a man of concern, nor a man that should be disregarded as just another roaming the streets. I am well-known, but am discreet about it. You?"

The girl looked down and bit her lip.

"Um…Giat."

"How unusual…now why don't you tell me your _first _name please. I really don't appreciate the games, and for now, your middle name serves no use to me."

The girl clenched her jaw, angry that he knew of her own tricks of the trade. She remained silent.

The man who wouldn't give his name crossed his arms.

"Fine then. Tell me something about yourself. I have already told you something about me, it is now _your turn._"

The girl chuckled. "Sorry, I thought you didn't appreciate games. But, if you say so…" the girl looked off into the distance and took a deep breath.

"I'm mad."

"Mad?" He questioned, looking out into the water. "One can not be mad, for it is a state of mind. Therefore, you're not mad, per say, but you are lost in a state of madness." the man replied.

"That's reassuring," she commented, looking awkwardly into the shadows behind him.

"It seems you were preoccupied with something before I came along?" the man noticed her obsession with the shadows.

"Yah, playing tag with my imaginary friends." she replied dryly. "And they're cheaters."

"And they can't come into the water?"

"Nope. They dissolve. So I'm stuck here for the most part."

The man looked off into the distance. "Have you ever considered trying to seek refuge on an island? If my eyes don't deceive me, there's an island right over there, a fairly good distance from the shore if you wish to remain _untagged. _Look."

He wasn't suggesting for her to look. He told her to do so. He pointed directly out towards a lone island with a large building in the shape of the T built upon it. She inspected it curiously. "I-I don't know…they always find ways around. They never leave me alone."

"A word of advice, my dear child," he said, leaning in closer to better emphasize its secrecy.

"If you don't know the rules, don't play the game."

The girl looked at him with a quizzical expression, wondering if this was the mad one here and she was just the bystander.

Or the victim.

"What? That doesn't even make any sense!" she cried with irritation. She never liked it when she didn't understand something. "What do you mean by the _rules_? It's _my _game, so how would you know anyway?"

The man took a step forward.

"Here, let me spell it out for you."

With unexpected and with impossible speed, the man had lifted her up by the collar of her shirt in an instant, and thrown her with unbelievable strength towards the shore of the beach neighboring the rocky shore, sending her into the icy cold water.

The girl hit the water with so much force it felt like a slap across the face, and sure enough, by the time she mustered up the strength to swim back up to the surface, the man was gone. "Thanks for the advice, jerk." she whispered under her breath, shivering in the cold water before taking a deep breath and swimming back to the shore. All the while, her mind was reeling. Perhaps that man wasn't mad at all. Maybe he was honestly providing her with something that will help her lose the shadow people?

She doubted it though; after all, she was most likely seeing things. "That's it," she said to herself as she pulled herself up onto one of the rocks farthest from the area where she saw the man who wouldn't give his name. "I'm just hallucinating now." She stared off into the sunset, and the silhouette of the 'T' shaped building stood out. Maybe he did mean to help her not get _tagged. _Maybe the people in that building could help her? She didn't ask herself any more questions, because just as the sun slowly descended the sky as if it were stairs, she drifted asleep.

Slade couldn't help but to look back at the girl from the top of a building not too far from the shore. All in all, she was smart, knew how to deal with things, knew how to keep and obtain information. All she needed to learn was how to hold her tongue. Then, maybe, she could be of use when it came to the pesky Teen Titans. He also thought about what she had said to him about the shadow people that were following her. Slade wasn't a psychologist, but he certainly knew how to mess with people's minds, as well as what mark it left. There wasn't a traumatizing event that could've made her imagine these creatures.

He knew all too well that they had to be real.

"Rest for tonight, child," he said to himself, the wind suddenly chillier than it was before. "Because as of tomorrow, you're going to be playing one of _my _games. And I have a very fun one in mind…"

_Author's Note: Hey all of you TT fans! This is my first TT fan fiction, so any constructive feedback is appreciated. I'm also writing two other Regular Show fanfics, and planning to write an Adventure Time fanfic and a Where The Wild Things Are fanfic (I know I have all these ideas crammed inside of my head and I'm running out of room lol). I actually wrote this out of boredom, since school testing is finally over and I can finally relax since I've been under so much pressure. I think I bombed it though, because I'm not the greatest when it comes to math heh ^^; Sorry if the last line sounds a bit pervy. ._. So if its any good, please let me know and I'll carry on, if not, eh, I've other stuff I'd like to finish anyway._

_~Toxin~_


	2. Energy

_I don't own anything but my OC! :)__ Enjoy!_

It was an amazing dream. There were rolling hills covered in luscious green grass. Flowers with elaborate colors and bizarre designs sprouted out of the ground and grew before her very eyes. A sole stream smoothly wound its way through the hills that formed the beautiful valley that she was in.

It was here the girl sat, dipping her feet into the shallow stream, running her fingers along the green grass and admiring this moment, a moment where she wasn't fleeing from anything. There was nothing to be afraid of here, for it was all her own. There were no shadows for the creatures to come out of; the sun was always up, the sky was never masked with clouds and the majestic aura of it all was never dampened. And best of all, she could smile here, her face untouched by the bitterness that so frequently surrounded her in a world where everything was bitter in and of itself. It was utterly peaceful, in this place that she was dreaming of.

And as the girl tickled her palms along the tips of the grass and inhaled the sweet scent of the grass and the flowers, she couldn't help but wonder if there was ever a chance of finding this place in reality.

Sure, there was no gold, no riches beyond her imagination. There were no servants coming to her aid, no priceless crown to sit upon her head so that everyone perceived her as royalty. There was none of this. So what was it that made this place so magical? After all, it was just a grassy meadow with a wandering stream.

What made it so magical for her was not how the grass tickled her bare palms, not how the water felt so refreshing as it splashed against her feet. It was merely that she was sitting there doing absolutely nothing but relaxing, for the first time in ages, without getting up once and running from _them. _To a normal person with a normal life, this would seem a little ridiculous, being so giddy just for sitting down and resting for a while. But one has to remember that this girl isn't a normal person with a normal life. And no matter how high she gets her hopes up, she will never be one of those people.

For now, yes, she rested and convinced herself that there was a place like this in the real world.

And then the voices came back.

_There! There she is! You see her?_

_She ran! She ran from us._

_We're gonna make her suffer now._

_Watch your back, look out!_

_We're not playing nice anymore!_

Their words echoed uneasily, and it was now confirmed that the only imaginary sanctuary that she had to retreat to had been invaded. There would be no more dreaming of this meadow after this, she knew. She stood up and tossed her black bangs out of her face aggressively. She hated this. Not only was she running from these things in reality, but now she was running from them in her sleep. After thinking this, there was a sudden jolt of energy that drove the girl to scream - not in fear, but in anger, at the voices that taunted and teased her.

"What!" She shrieked, her fists clenched and shaking, a tears squeezing themselves out of her eyes and spilling over her cheeks. "What do you want from me! Just leave me alone!"

_Oh, she looks like a baby._

_You gonna cry?_

_What's the matter? You scared yet?_

_We'll give you something to cry about!_

There was a rumbling beneath her feet, and before she could find something to grab on to, much less realize what was going on, the entire meadow started shaking violently. She fell over and watched as the hills split in two, black fire spewing out through the cracks, ultimately shattering the remaining parts of the land. The grass shriveled up and disintegrated, creating a layer of fine gray dust on each of the crumbling hills. The stream was no longer peaceful; it was horrifying, gushing a red fluid mercilessly against the remnants of the living grass that desperately tried to cling on to the last of its life. The sky was concealed with black storm clouds as they consumed the last of what remained of the girl's sanctuary.

There were no shadow people coming out of the darkness.

But this was much worse.

The girl scurried backward towards the most decent part of the valley, a small untouched area with yellowing grass. As the thunder shook the ground and the lightning lit up all of the destruction, she let out a cry of despair and gave up. She gave up all hope that there would be a place like this one in reality. If there was, it was unlikely that would be shown mercy, or even left standing after she had been there. These creatures were willing to go far beyond materializing before her, if it made sure they got what they wanted.

But what did they want?

In the midst of her thoughts, she didn't notice that the very ground she was sitting upon was dissolving into the air, as was the rest of the tattered dream. She did realize this when she fell through however, for she shouted in alarm and grabbed the corner of the hole that she almost tumbled down. It was no good, she could feet it disappearing in her very grasp. "No, no," She told herself, looking down and trying to find a place for her feet to step. There was nothing, just a gaping hole engulfed in darkness.

The voices were laughing at her now as she tried to reposition herself, her hands slowly slipping from the dissolving area of earth.

_Jump! Jump!_

_Do a cannonball!_

_Don't look down, whatever you do!_

_Meet you down there!_

The girl started shaking. Her hands fumbled clumsily, and she lost the meager grip of the small portion of earth left over the gaping hole. She screamed and plummeted down the hole. The voices got louder and louder.

_Weee!_

_Down, down, down._

_Look at her face!_

_Hello?_

_Hello?_

_Hello?_

* * *

She woke up to an annoying prodding sensation on her arm. She could hear voices, and thanked whoever it was speaking for not being the taunting ones she heard in her dreams moments before.

"Hello? Hellooo? Hellooloolooo…"

"Beast Boy, if somebody's eyes are closed, it means they can't see the faces you make at them."

"Well then you try waking her up!"

"Fine." There was a faded sound of splashing, and then the girl felt something cold and wet thwack into her face before dispersing and dripping down her neck. She woke up immediately.

"Bwah! What? Who?" She shouted as she sat up and frantically looked around her, afraid that the creatures had caught up with her at last.

Fortunately, it wasn't the shadow creatures.

Nonetheless, they weren't like the people the girl saw on the streets every day.

When she looked up, there was a childish, curious-looking green boy with pointy ears and a sharp tooth protruding from his bottom jaw and over his upper lip, sitting on a rock in front of her own. There was also a pale girl with dark short hair wearing a cloak and hovering a foot above the water next to him.

They both looked at her quizzically.

"Dude, that was mean, Raven." Beast Boy said with an immature sounding voice.

"It woke her up didn't it? Besides, a little ocean water won't kill her." Raven retorted before turning her attention to the girl.

"We saw you lying over here from the tower," she said. "Did you fall asleep, or something?"

Beast Boy spoke before the girl could respond. "Fall asleep? On a rock! That's really weird."

The girl shrugged and looked back at her rock.

"Not really. I mean, I was just really tired yesterday. Do you ever have those days?" She stretched. "You know, where you get so tired you can sleep on anything?"

Beast Boy nodded vigorously. "Pshh, yeah, all the time! I'm Beast Boy, by the way. This is Raven." He pointed to the hovering girl to his right, who rolled her eyes as if she were annoyed by his gesture. "So, what's your name?"

The girl bit her lip for a second before replying. She didn't think that these people were as mad as the one before. Maybe she could trust these ones. "I-I go by Cassy."

"Cool." Beast Boy replied nonchalantly before spotting the gash in her shirt.

"Um, hey, Cassy? What happened to your shirt?"

Cassy looked down and saw what caught his attention - a huge, jagged cut through the side of her shirt, the ridges covered with dry blood.

"Oh, that?" Cassy looked down again. "Nah, it's nothing."

Beast Boy saw the dark red that was soaked into the side of her apparel. "Hey, that's…that's _blood_! Dude, what happened?" Beast Boy asked as he hopped over to her rock to get a closer look. Cassy tried to block his view, and didn't necessarily want to get into the details of the morning prior to this one.

"I'm fine, Beast Boy, honest!"

The green-skinned teenager looked back at Raven.

"Raven, we have to get Cassy to the tower! She's cut!"

Raven sighed and shook her head. "I don't think that's a good idea. Besides, Robin told us to wake her up, not to-"

Beast Boy stood next to Cassy and pointed at the tear in her shirt she was trying to hide to better emphasize his point.

"Dude, hello! She's hurt! Bad!"

Raven sighed. "I-I don't know…I mean, she _is _hurt, but-"

"Come on, Raven! I'm sure Robin will understand, and we can't just leave her like this!"

Cassy spoke up, her index finger pointed into the air. "I don't mind if you do, though!" Beast Boy looked back at her sternly and Cassy slowly put it down.

Raven groaned with every intention to come across as annoyed. "Alright, alright! I'll tell Robin and we'll…take her to the medical wing in the tower until she's better, happy?"

"Yes!" Beast Boy nearly shouted happily, "Yes I am!" Cassy sighed heavily and stared at the rocks of the shore. Raven shot her a questioning glance.

"What?" Cassy said over Beast Boy's cheering.

Without hesitation, Raven shook her head and looked down at her feet. "It's…nothing."

But this was a lie.

There was something. Raven had the peculiar ability to see people's auras, a distinctive radiance that was different for every person. In her time, Raven had seen a lot of different auras, which helped her know people's personality, their most felt emotion, and sometimes even their thoughts. She remembered her own mother's aura as a mystifying, violet-purple pattern that emitted in soft, gentle waves from her body. If Raven looked closely at her mother's aura, she could see bird feathers swirling in the wind. Beast Boy's aura is interesting, with a light blue and vivid green pattern that radiated from him in a cyclone shape. As was Starfire's aura, except it was yellow and gray.

But Cassy's aura was by far the most bizarre of all that Raven has seen. Hers was a black purple mix, one that didn't radiate like any of the others do. In fact, it tried hard to collect itself and keep as close to her as it can. But when Raven looked closer at her aura that refused to disperse, she saw things that made her skin crawl. Tall, misshapen creatures that dragged their distorted arms behind them; a handcrafted wooden key that had a human eyeball in it; a little girl being chased by a looming shadow that had no absolute figure…

Not only was her aura terrifying to look at and experience, it was also what it did to the surrounding energy. It consumed it, all of the energy around it. Raven could feel Cassy's energy trying to burrow into her own, trying to feed off of it. But why would she need it when she has so much of it refusing to release itself?

"Raven, you comin'?" Beast Boy shouted from the island, standing in the doorway of the tower with Cassy's hand in his. Raven took a deep breath and recollected herself before flying towards the tower, her walkie-talkie in hand and ready to call her leader.

* * *

"Okay, _this _is the living room," Beast Boy grinned as he led her into a huge room. "Over there's the kitchen, but it's really messy because Cyborg's too lazy to clean up his mess."

"Hey!" A deep voice said as a large figure waltzed into the room. "You're one to talk!"

"That's Lazy, I-I mean Cyborg. Sorry, Cy." Beast Boy laughed as he pointed at the Teen Titan who was made of mostly robotics. "Cy, this is Cassy."

Cassy smiled quirkily and put up a peace sign. "Sup?"

Cyborg had to look down to see her, which always made her feel short. But instead of making fun of her height, he smiled welcomingly.

"Well, hiya little lady! I was just about to make some waffles for breakfast. Want some?"

Cassy furrowed her brows. "_Waffles? _What're those?"

Beast Boy and Cyborg's eyes both went wide with surprise. They looked at each other disbelievingly before turning back to Cassy.

"Dude…" Beast Boy said. "You've…never had…" An awkward moment passed. Then, in an instant, both boys had her by the hands and were dragging her into the kitchen, eager to share with her the glorious wonders of homemade waffles before she had to get her cut checked. Waffles appeared to be much more important.

Raven had just flown in when they entered the kitchen. By the looks of it, they were making waffles, explaining to Cassy the tricks of the trade in harsh whispers so that Raven didn't dare try to steal them. Not that she cared about how to make waffles in the first place. Raven sighed and floated down the hallway towards her room. "They ask to do one thing, they go off and do another," she complained.

She thought that Beast Boy would have frantically dragged Cassy to the medical wing and freak out about her cut. She shook her head, which had started throbbing a few moments prior to meeting Cassy. All she wanted to do now was meditate: to hover over her bed, candles lit around her room, so that she can replenish the energy that Cassy's had absorbed. She wanted to relax and, most of all, forget the images projected in Cassy's aura. But just as she was about to enter her room, a deafening alarm rang throughout the entire tower, causing her to jump and rub her temples. She let out an irritated groan and floated into the kitchen to see that all three of them were looking at the red flashing lights with surprise.

"Aw man!" Cyborg whined, looking back at the batter in the glass bowl. "I'm not even done with the waffles." He gripped his whisk angrily, his chef hat on the verge of slipping off his head.

"The waffles can wait for now, Cyborg," Raven said before Robin sprinted into the room.

Robin wore his usual hairstyle, his black hair propped up and thrusting out at all sides. His black mask was over his eyes, making him appear like a raccoon to Cassy rather than a "robin".

"Cyborg, why'd the alarm go off?" he asked, not wanting to waste time by starting up the computer. Cyborg put down his whisk and took off his chef hat, and tapped something on his mechanical arm. A screen sprang up filled with images and information. "A bunch of Slade's robots are wreaking havoc downtown again," he said wearily.

Robin clenched his jaw. "That's the third time this week. We've got to end this: get rid of all of his robots at once, or get rid of their leader." He turned to speak to Beast Boy but did a double take after spotting the new face in the tower. Beast Boy took in his surprise and walked over to her side. "Cassy, this is Robin. Robin, Cassy."

Cassy shifted nervously. There was no way she was going to remember all of these names, she was most likely going to mix up Raven and Robin especially. "Sup?" she grinned oddly. Raven looked at Cyborg and spoke in a rushed manner, not wanting to wait any longer. "Where are the robots headed, and are there any pedestrians?"

"Let's see here…it says they're headed toward Main Street using Moor Way, but it's abandoned for the most part for a good half an hour before they reach Main."

Raven nodded. "Good. Robin, I need to talk to you for a second." She still couldn't bring herself to look at Cassy, it was too much to handle, psychologically speaking. She didn't think she could be in the same room with Cassy for much longer. Robin could hear the tension in her voice, even when the other's couldn't. He nodded and Raven gestured toward the hallway, leading them both out of the room. Cassy looked at the automatic door as it closed. "I wonder what they're talking about…" She said to the two people in the room.

* * *

When the door closed behind them, Raven stopped in her tracks and rested her head against the wall.

"Are you okay Raven?" Robin asked her. Raven looked up at him. "It's Cassy, Robin."

"What?"

"Cassy…well, it's hard to explain. Everybody has a different aura, a different energy that they carry with them, but Cassy's, it…" she paused and decided that it would be best to start from scratch.

"Aura's have a unique ability to hold everyone's thoughts, emotions, memories, all in the same energy. Energies that are similar repel, and energies that are different attract. And, my energy is very similar to hers, but that's beside the point. Her energy isn't like anything I've ever seen before. It doesn't want to let itself known, it tries to conceal itself. It's like…it's trying to store itself for something, and it feeds off of similar energies around it to build up energy."

"So she's feeding off of your energy?" Robin asked.

"Yes, but not consciously. Her energy's trying to grow stronger for something, but… I don't know, I guess I'm overreacting, but she has an energy like mine. I've learned to control my energy so that it doesn't feed off of other's, and her energy seems like it can't be trained..."

"So, if she has the same energy, you think that she's capable of what you're capable of?"

Raven nodded. "That's exactly what I think."

Robin tapped his chin before snapping his fingers. "Then there's only one way to find out."

It seemed to take forever for the two to finish their conversation, because by the time they came out, Cyborg and Cassy were eating waffles, and Beast Boy was sleeping with his head on the counter, a small puddle of drool forming on the countertop. Raven glanced at Cassy, who was devouring the waffles she helped Cyborg make with a pleasant expression, her black hair almost dipping into the pool of syrup on her plate. Even now, Raven could feel Cassy trying to absorb her energy, and Raven willed it not to give in.

"Cyborg?" Robin asked. Cyborg knew what this meant, and tapped a button on his arm.

"…it looks like they're breaking up…there's three groups of 'em now, all headed fot Main Street, fair distance apart."

"Alright. Beast Boy and Cyborg, you two will take out one group. Starfire and I will take down another, and-"

Beast Boy looked around. "Hey, where _is _Starfire anyway?"

Cyborg's face lit up. "Oh yeah, Star told me to tell you that she was feeling a little sick after that party we went to on Tamaran. She's blowin' some chunks up in there, man." he gestured towards Starfire's room.

Robin's face went pale. "Great." He turned his attention to the black-haired girl eating the syrup off of her plate.

"Cassy, we can't leave you here alone, so do you want to come?"

Cassy nodded. "Sure, why not? I've got nothing better to do anyway."

Raven looked at her peculiarly. "So, you don't have any parental guidance for a girl your age?"

"Nope. They, uh…thought it would be best for me to widen my horizons, you know, to see the world, or whatever." Beast Boy's eyes went wide. "Wow, really?"

"Yup."

"How long have you been on the road?"

"Couple years."

"So how do you-"

Robin interrupted. "Beast Boy, now's not the time. We have to go. Cassy, just stick with us and you'll be fine. Cyborg, get the T-Car."

* * *

_Author's Note: Hey guys! I had so much fun writing this chapter! I really liked expressing my own theory of auras and energy, as well as having Cassy and the Teen Titans meet ^_^ I'm sick in bed with Strep Throat right now, so I figured, might as well finish a chapter before getting back to school! Just so you know, Cassy isn't her real name, that's what she _goes by. _Keep that in mind for the upcoming chapters :)  
_

_~Toxin~_


	3. Monster

When Robin said "get the T-Car", Cassy wasn't at all expecting it to resemble Cyborg as much as it did. The intricate blue designs on the over-polished car resembled the ones that he bore here and there all over the robotic parts of his body. Then again, nor was she expecting to follow these atypical teenagers on their mission to defeat Slade's - whoever that was - mischievous robots. And as she climbed into the high-tech car, which was doubtlessly built by Cyborg himself considering the fact that he wouldn't stop bragging about how amazing it was, she took a deep uncertain breath and asked what probably seemed like the stupidest question in the world.

"So, who's this _Slade_?"

As Cyborg got into the driver's seat, he turned and glanced at Cassy with curiosity. "You mean, you don't know him by now? He nearly blew up the entire city a week ago, and lots of failed but way-too-close attempts before that, believe me."

Before she had the time to look down and mentally scold herself for her lack of information about this city, Beast Boy climbed in next to her and grimaced at the mention of 'Slade'. "Blech! Be glad you don't know him, Cassy. I hope you never meet him! It's bad enough that Raven and Robin decided to drag you along to _make friends_ with his robots," Beast Boy crossed his arms and stuck his nose up into the air defiantly. "But I guess you can't judge evil robots by their burning ambition to take over the city."

Cyborg sighed at Beast Boy's comment and started up the engine, and the car softly started to hum. Cyborg looked back one more time, making an odd face at Beast Boy, who scooted a little closer to Cassy when she turned her head away look out the open window.

"Dude, why are you hitching a ride in my car? You can grow wings and haul your own butt down there, Robin and Rae are probably waiting on us."

Beast Boy groaned. "C'mon, Cy, I wanna introduce Cassy to the robots! Besides, if we're in such a rush, why are we even taking the car when we could just walk? It takes half the time!"

Cyborg eyed him sternly. "Don't you insult my baby, BB."

"Then let me get a riiiiiiiiide," he whined in reply, slouching deeper into the seats and sticking his lower lip out in a pouting fashion. Cyborg sighed. "Fine, just don't make fun of my car dude, she's sensitive." He rubbed the seat he was sitting in passionately. "I don't want her feelin' like she ain't good enough."

Beast Boy leaned in and said something softly in Cassy's ear, "Dude…that's what she said,"

"I can hear you!" Cyborg said loudly. Cassy giggled. Cyborg let their laughter roll off his shoulder as he punched in numerous buttons on the car's large control panel. "Check this out BB," he said as he rested his finger on a large red button in the center of the panel. "Rae and I both agreed that it would be handy to get rid of the flying potion that she always kept in the kitchen cupboard,"

"What?" Beast Boy asked. "You mean that funky stuff she poured into our pancake batter that one time?"

"Yup, she gave it to me so she wouldn't be tempted to use it again," He bit his lip. "Still, we did deserve it after…"

"Yeah, yeah, don't bring _that _up. I thought she used all of it,"

"She didn't; she used one teaspoon of it - that stuff's strong, remember? Star and Rae were too busy laughing to help us down, and we were crashing into stuff for days!"

Beast Boy huffed and looked down nervously. "Yeah, I remember that."

Cyborg laughed at his reaction. "Anyway, there was still a whole lot left, so both of us got together and decided to work a little bit on my baby. Check it out."

Cyborg pushed the red button firmly and there was a loud rumbling in the car, followed by a bang and a foul smell wafting through the open windows. "Ew, Cy, you couldn't put something in it to make it smell better?"

Cy hit a few more buttons on the panel vigorously. "Well you didn't seem to have a problem with it when it was in the pancakes! Now hold on tight!"

Cassy couldn't find much of anything to hold on to, much less find a good grip on since she was sitting in the center seat. As she looked around for something to grab on to (and mentally asked herself why in the world their weren't any seatbelts in the back seat) Beast Boy tapped her shoulder to get her attention and held out his arm. "Here, it's gonna get bumpy." he said cheerfully. Cassy, not knowing what to expect after all that has happened to her so far, didn't hesitate to accept the offer, and intertwined her arm with his. Just in the nick of time, too, for when Cassy looked back up to see where they were going, Cyborg stomped his foot down on the gas petal and the trio were forced back into their seats as the car burst into the sky.

"Booya!" Cyborg shouted gleefully as he harshly jerked the steering reel this way and that to gain control of the hovering vehicle. He did this until they were level and hovering directly above the city. Cassy didn't realize that she was clinging onto Beast Boy until Cyborg looked back to check on the two and saw her terrified face. "Let me guess," he started, his stare switching back and forth from Cassy to Beast Boy. "You've never rode in a flying car before either, huh?" Cassy shook her head. Beast Boy chuckled. "I don't blame you, dude, not many people have!" At the sound of his voice, she turned to see that she was, in fact, holding onto Beast Boy with a death grip. She released him immediately and flung her black bangs out of her face. "Y-yeah, it's a first for me…" she said, her face flushing red and her eyes glancing back and forth. Cy was just about to make a sly comment to Beast Boy about this when his walkie-talkie went off. "Cyborg, Beast Boy! Where are you guys? We need you!" It was Robin's voice, and the background Cassy heard crashing and banging, as well as static and beeping.

Beast Boy yanked the walkie-talkie from Cyborg's hand and spoke into it with anger. "Sorry, dude, Cyborg just _had _to take his beautiful car for a test-fly and almo-" Cyborg took it from him.

"Yeah Robin, we're comin'!" Cyborg pushed the red button again and the car descended toward the city slowly. Beast Boy peeked over Cyborg's seat. "So, uh, about how long will it be until we get there?"

"Oh, don't you start that again," Cy said sternly, remembering the time when the T-Car malfunctioned and it refused to let them out until Raven had to pry it open with her powers.

"What? No, seriously, how long is it gonna be? I don't wanna miss all of the action." Cy put on a doubtful smirk.

"Or do you just wanna show off in front of Cassy?"

Beast Boy growled as he clenched his fists and Cyborg laughed manically. "Just a minute here," he said between wiping his teary eyes. "She can't go really fast when she's in the air, see, and we-"

A loud crash came from the side door closest to Cassy, and in a split second it was ripped clean off by what looked like a pair of metal hands. Cassy cried out in alarm as the mechanical hand nearly grabbed hold of her arm. Beast Boy jumped in front of her instinctively, shielding her from a half destroyed robot that desperately tried to reach the girl. "Cy, we've got robots, do something !" He screamed loudly as he kicked the robot in its metal torso and it nearly flew out of the doorway, still barely gripping the edges of where the door was ripped off. "My car!" Cyborg exclaimed as he attempted to regain control of the vehicle. It spun out of control, faster and faster, still hovering high over the city like a yo-yo dangling in the wind on a thin thread. With all of the spinning, the potion could wear off any moment, without so much as a rumble from under the hood it was placed. Cassy was pressed up against the doorway, her dizzy sight not able to focus in on the scene before her and her stomach threatening to coat the two in combat in liquefied waffle chunks.

"Hurry Cyborg! Do something!" Beast Boy shouted as he nearly lost his balance and tumbled out of the car. The robot was still trying to pull itself up, glaring holes through the girl helplessly cornered in the far end of the car with blinking red eyes. Why it was trying to reach her Cassy did not know - but she didn't like it. Cyborg let out an angry shout and slammed his fist onto a large blue button. There was a pause, where the car's engine stopped rumbling and Beast Boy's complaining about falling out were silent, and the repulsive smell that the potion emitted was no longer coming through the window. "Dude…" Beast Boy barely whispered.

"That can't be good."

The car, no longer suspended in the air by the magic installed into it, fell toward the earth as if it were hasty and no longer was comfortable without a road under its wheels. Cassy let out a shrill shriek as the four, including the tattered robot, started to hurtle toward the city beneath them. Beast Boy managed to push the robot out of the car and flipped towards the girl who was desperately trying to not throw up.

"Cassy! Hang on to me!" He shouted as he turned around, indicating for her to jump on his back. She didn't see what good it would do, but she would much rather take her chances than end up caught in the ruins of the car that was going to be smashed flat as the pancakes she had that wanted to come back up. She hopped up and wrapped her arms around his neck, and regretted it as soon as he grabbed hold of her and, with the other, flung himself out the door.

She couldn't recall if she screamed or not. Before her very eyes, the rambunctious teenage boy was now a huge green pterodactyl, ripping open the top of the car and forcefully yanking Cyborg from his car seconds before it exploded.

"My car!" He shouted repeatedly, reaching his hand out to it as the flaming remnants of it fell into the center of the abandoned street. "My baby!"

Beast Boy let out a deafening call and he changed his course, all the while Cassy was latched onto his back and Cyborg was mourning over the car that was now melting away.

Cassy had never been in the air before. Ever. Not even riding a plane, or on one of those frightful thrill rides that shot up into the sky. This was, one could say, the first time her feet were off of the ground. But Cassy didn't like it at all. She looked down and saw how her legs dangled and her sneakers threatened to slip off of her petite feet and fall to the ground. She didn't like how the wind constantly smacked her cheeks and sent her hair flaring out wildly. She didn't like how the chunky material in her stomach that used to be waffles were churning in her stomach. But there was one - no, there were several things that she had grown to love about this short ride.

She liked how she could feel the rhythm of Beast Boy's breathing and the beat of his pulse pumping on her skin.

She liked how she could simply look up to see the entire city spread out before her, practically on a platter, while she simply rested her head on Beast Boy's Pterodactyl form and gazed at the breathtaking sight.

She liked knowing that up here, the shadow creatures could never touch her. She adored the idea of living in the sky.

But sooner or later, you have to come down. And Cassy hated it as Beast Boy swooped into one of the fairly empty streets of the city and flew toward the two beings viciously attacking a large group of robots. Beast Boy gently landed and Cassy was able to hop down.

"Cassy, you're finally here." a voice said behind her, making her flip around with a fearful expression. The girl with the hood over her head - Raven, she thought it was - was standing before her.

"Oh, it's just you," she said with a relieved tone, wiping the beads of sweat on her forehead.

Raven looked at her peculiarly. "Yeah, it's me. Who were you expecting?"

Cassy shifted her gaze nervously. "Oh, no one, nothing - no one, just, heh, jumpy, ya know?" she stuttered. Raven looked at her with a doubtful expression. "Yeeeaaah, jumpy," Raven replied and she led her to a building not too far from the fighting.

"Okay," she started, pulling off her hood and stopping in front of the building, not making eye contact with her or looking in her direction at all. "Just stay here until the robots are all cleared up. That should be soon enough." out of the corner of her eye, Raven saw Cassy flashing her two thumbs up and an odd smirk, and didn't know whether to interpret it as encouragement or a sign to show that she understood. She also noticed how the aura wasn't at all giving itself away, but Raven could feel it absorbing her own. She didn't want to be around this mysterious girl any longer, but she didn't want the girl to think she didn't like her. In the midst of her strained thoughts, she simply turned around and floated off into the distance, a little away from where the action was going on.

Cassy, after noticing this pessimistic reaction, slumped against the damp brick wall and sighed deeply. _What's up with that chick? _she thought as she looked at her reflection in a small cracked mirror propped upon a dumpster in front of her. _She just leaves me at the corner of this street, never looks at me, and huffs off after every time she talks to me. Do I really look _that _bad? _As she thought this, she took a step forward and inspected her face in the mirror. Not able to find any reason to be shunned for unattractiveness, she glanced at the shadows in the distance. _At least those creepy dark things haven't-_

Her thoughts were interrupted when she looked back and noticed an eerily similar face in the mirror. A man wearing a strange mask, with an intimidating stare, standing directly behind her.

Cassy spun around on her heels so fast that it gave her a headache. There was no one standing there. Not a soul to be found, other than the four titans fighting the robots.

"I've lost it," she said to herself, resting her back on the graffiti-covered wall once again, clutching her upset stomach.

* * *

It wasn't that Raven didn't want to be around Cassy. She just couldn't stand the feeling. The feeling of being deprived of her energy, it weakened Raven more than she could bear. As she walked away, her legs started to shake, as did her hands, and drops of sweat rolled down her temples. Her head was throbbing viciously, every time sending a shiver down her spine. She needed to rest, or she was going to black out. Which was why, after walking a good distance away from the girl with the consuming aura, she fell to her knees, her chest heaving as she struggled to take decent breaths. To have energy taken from her was, and anyone having experienced it would agree, the worst feeling in existence. It was hopeless to try to fight and keep your energy within you - the ones that feed off of it will eventually come to depend on your specific energy for producing whatever it needed, no matter how hard you try to keep it on you. In Raven's case, it was the dark energy that she was able to release from her body. For Beast Boy, it was the ability to shape shift into different animals. For Cassy, it remained a mystery. It was almost like swimming through sunlight as thick as syrup - it was uncomfortably warm, tiresome, made you drowsy, couldn't struggle, couldn't move. It made every muscle in your body ache, and made your head spin. All in all, it was unpleasant. And if Cassy only fed off of _Raven's _specific energy, then it could only be for one of these reasons:

1. Cassy collects energy like her own to store it and use it as a force, as Raven did with hers.

2. Cassy collects energy like Raven's that uses itself against her own will, something that happens when a negative emotion manifests the energy being absorbed, almost like a possession.

Or 3. Cassy collects energy like Raven's to repel somebody or something specific, something that is capable of causing harm, but something that can never be contained.

As a drop of sweat dripped off of her nose, she thought of these thoroughly. For all she knew, it could be all three of these things, and there was no way to find out which one it could be.

"Raven!" she heard Beast Boy shout, and in an instant - had she blacked out for a second? - she was pulled onto her feet by the green teenager.

"I'm fine, Beast Boy, I'm just…exhausted." Raven spat out, yanking herself free from his grasp and straightening out her apparel. "What happened?" he persisted. "Was it one of Slade's robots?" Raven sighed and pulled her hood over her head. "No. Listen Beast Boy, I need your help."

Beast Boy seemed taken aback. Raven rarely asked for help from him, let alone anyone else. "With what?"

"Is Cassy friends with you?"

"Um…I guess, I mean I've only known her for, like, an hour, not even that."

Raven bit her lip aggressively. "But does she care for you enough so that if you were in danger she'd try to help you?"

Beast Boy shot Raven a questioning look. "Well… I don't know. Why?"

Raven wiped her sweaty palms off on her cape and took a deep breath. "It's just…you have to do something for me."

* * *

Cassy was just about fall asleep on the cold concrete ground when Beast Boy shouted her name. Without even wiping the drowsiness from her eyes, she hopped up and burst toward the direction where he was calling her name, not knowing why, but fearing the worst.

"Beast Boy? You all right?" She shouted back, and after receiving a horrified shout, she began to panic.

"Cassy! _Help_! Please!" he shrieked. Cassy inspected the street, now scattered with destroyed robot parts, for where the shouts were coming from. "Beast Boy!" she screamed, running faster than she ever thought she could, swiftly jumping over the trashed parts and heading towards the alley where the screaming was coming from. "Beast Boy? I'm coming!" she cried out loudly.

"Hurry! Please!" he responded, his voice getting louder as she neared him. When she turned at a nearby alleyway and saw Beast Boy surrounded by Slade's robots, she immediately looked around for a weapon, not knowing that she was a weapon herself. She pried a bent steel baseball bat from a nearby trash can and, without a hint of fear in her eyes, stormed toward the robots aggressively. In a swift swing, four robots were knocked to the ground. _Thwack! _Four more robots crashed face first into the concrete. _Thwack! Thwack!_

Cassy was just about to send the last two robots next to Beast Boy to the ground when she saw them.

They were all standing, herded together, just behind Beast Boy. She froze, the bat slipping from her fingertips and landing on the concrete with a thud. "Wohoo! Go Cassy! Thanks dude…Cassy?" But she couldn't hear him. She could only hear them.

_You ran, you ran, you ran._

_Chicken._

_Look, she's shaking!_

_Oh, Beast Boy, Beast Boy, they're gonna get me! Help me!_

_It's a shame he can't see us. None of them can. _The tall one said as it stepped through Beast Boy, who was still staring at Cassy with a confused expression. Its feet dragged, leaving a sticky black ooze in its tracks that she thought only she could see. But she was wrong.

* * *

"Raven? Raven, she only fought them off with a bat, she didn't…" soon Robin's voice was a whisper, fading into the background. Raven stood in the shadows far behind Cassy, with the other two titans, when she saw the creatures that she caught glimpses of in Cassy's aura. They were hideous, tall, spine-tingling creatures, dragging themselves toward the girl that was frozen in her tracks. Their necks looked as if they'd been snapped, their fingertips sharp black knifes entwined with a gooey black stringy substance. And they were heading towards Cassy with a look of amusement and determination written upon what was supposed to be their faces. Without thinking, Raven ran out of the shadows and cupped her hands to her mouth.

"Run, Cassy! Run! Get out of there!" she shrieked as Robin, Cyborg, and Beast Boy looked at her as if she grew another head. Cassy took a step back. The tallest creature snarled and clenched what was supposed to be a fist.

_No you don't! You're not getting away, not now!_

It shouted, bowing its head down and murmuring something under its breath. Before, Beast Boy and the others couldn't see the creatures.

Now, they were in plain sight.

"Beast Boy!" Robin shouted as the creature turned around to face the changeling. But Beast Boy didn't need to be told more than that. He was too scared to shape shift, and just before he could slide his quivering body past the disgusting things, it - whatever it was - grabbed his arm.

Cassy couldn't explain it. She couldn't describe it if her life depended on it. One moment Beast Boy was there, fleeing from these things. But then it touched him. It grabbed him by his arm, and something happened inside of her. Something made her, for once in her life, fearless of these creatures. And she wasn't expecting it to happen. None of them were, not even the creatures themselves.

While to the others around her, it happened immediately, it seemed slow to Cassy. Unbearably slow. Time froze just as the changeling and the creature made contact, and she could feel something dark swell up inside of her. She could feel it under her skin, dying to pry itself free and shower the creatures with all of the rage that she could muster.

Which was exactly what happened.

"_BEAST BOY!_" she shouted at the top of her lungs just as her vision was obscured with darkness and the energy released itself. It felt like her blood was boiling, and the skin on her hands burned as the energy burst through and rushed toward the creature with the changeling in its grasp. It pelted it with unbelievable force, slamming the thing into the wall before picking it up and slamming it down again - hard. The creature let out an earsplitting screech and the other creatures hurtled themselves toward the girl angrily.

Cassy felt her fingertips go numb as another bolt of dark energy was shot through her hands and went straight for one of the creatures. Surprisingly enough, it allowed it to strike its arm, with a loud _CRACK! _dislocating it. It looked down at its now dangling arm before grabbing it with the other hand and ripping it clean off and throwing it to the ground, and smiled as another arm grew back in the dislocated one's place.

It was around this time when Cassy started to feel dizzy, stumbling a ways backward before the voices overcame her.

_She attacked me! She did!_

_You creature, you monster._

_You're just like us! Just like us!_

_Monster, monster, monster…_

"No," Cassy said to herself, shaking her head and covering her ears. "No I'm not. No I'm not!"

_Yes you are, yes you are! _

They teased her before stepping forward.

_Just admit it. You can't hide it forever._

_Its what you are._

_Don't deny it, you're a thing._

_A creature._

_A waste._

_MONSTER._

Cassy couldn't take it. They repeated themselves, their voices growing louder and louder. Her head began to throb, and she could feel her whole body quivering. "No! No! NO!" She shouted loudly. Her voice, as well as the titans voices, were drowned out by the voices.

_Yes! Yes! Yes!_

Cassy clenched her fists and could feel the anger towards these creatures intensify with every breath she took. She felt a pang of anger as she gradually raised her fists. She couldn't help it. She didn't mean to. She didn't want to. But she did.

She snapped.

"I…said…. _**NOOOOOO!**_" Cassy screamed with a demonic voice like that of the creatures, gnarled and gravelly. She raised her fists into the air and brought them down violently, and the ground beneath her feet quaked. A whoosh of air blasted everyone around her. She prayed that the titans took cover, because she could feel it, the dark creature's pain as the wind she manifested the negative energy with blasted them before they deteriorated. Cassy could feel it, their bodies falling apart, slowly becoming nothing, turning into dust and falling to the ground. She could feel their heads, their chests, their legs' pain in her own. In no less than a minute, the creatures were bits of dust and ashes suspended in the air by her energy.

Then, without warning, the black wind containing the remnants of these creatures came hurtling back to Cassy, slamming into her and knocking the breath out of her before she could scream. It bellowed angrily before spinning around her entire body and thrusting itself down her throat, ashes and all.

_Part of you, part of us._

_Part of you, part of us._

_Part of you, part of us._

Cassy heard their voices inside of her head rather than all around her, chanting over and over again.

_Part of you, part of us._

_Part of you, part of us._

_Part of you, part of us._

Cassy fell to her knees and blacked out.

* * *

_Author's Note: Well. ._. This chapter was a little…dark. Too bad it gets worse here on out XD Anyways, I hope this wasn't too long, a lot of stuff to fit in this chapter, you know? Thank you to those who reviewed, I really appreciate it! If you haven't already, then please to, it makes me feel good __:)_

_~Toxin~  
_


	4. Faults

Raven aggressively shook her head in disbelief next to the entrance of the medical room. She clenched her fists in frustration, unable to feel her fingernails digging into the soft center of her palms until they began to bleed. She clenched her jaw, hopelessly trying to put together the pieces to this peculiar puzzle. She feared for the life of the young teenage girl residing in the room not five steps away from her, but no matter what she told herself, Raven couldn't bring herself to look at her. Why didn't she just go in there and inspect the damage Cassy had not meant to inflict onto herself? Why couldn't she just waltz in there and use her powers to find a solution, maybe even the reason behind the unexplainable events that occurred only half an hour ago?

Because, not only did she fear for her, but she also feared what she was capable of.

After seeing what she did - strangely, right after the creature threatened Beast Boy - there was no questioning that she could do much, much more. Raven slunk to her knees and burrowed her head into her arms, her head throbbing painfully. "Come on, come on! Think!" she spat at herself. She felt useless in this specific situation, when normally the team sought her advice after being exposed to such a spectacle. She could see them now, all her friends pacing around anxiously in the living room, wondering when she would finally have all of the answers for them. They had already attempted to ask her all of these questions, pressuring her into finding the answers and explaining everything that had happened, making her feel as if she were being crammed into a little box, no moving space, can't breathe, can't see much of anything. But how could she explain it? There were only two things that she was absolutely sure of. One, that Cassy had a connection to these creatures one way or another (anybody could figure that out) and two, that if this outburst of energy got her stuck in a hospital bed in critical condition, then there was no question as to what something bigger could've done, if she could've obtained more energy before coming in contact with these creatures.

And that was another thing that Raven had not yet understood; the creatures. These revolting things were but a mystery to her, and the only thing that she could connect them to were silly Azarath stories that the monks used to tell her about in order to get her to sleep at night. There was nothing that Raven could say to her friends about these…things, these creatures that seemed to have something against the seemingly innocent girl who was now fatally wounded. What would her friends say if she told them she had no idea what to do at this point. She was confused, angry, and more than anything, distressed. There was no way that she would find all of the answers. Not without her friends help at least.

"Raven?" Robin's voice asked as walked through the hallway and neared his shaken friend. Before he had the opportunity to come closer and comfort the fellow titan, she stepped back and put her hand up in the air as a sign for him to stop. "No." she said, practically reading his mind and unable to bring herself to look at his stern expression.

"Raven, I really think you should get some rest; you look horrible."

"No." she repeated. "No, I'm fine, I can figure this out…"

"I'm sure you can, but for now, you should just take it easy."

"I don't have to. I'm okay."

"Raven…" Robin started, placing a hand on her shoulder in a concerned manner. "Listen to me. You aren't going to get anywhere unless you rest for a little bit. Trust me, it'll do you no good to stress out like this. Okay?"

Raven looked at him as he shot her a reassuring smile, and after a quick mental debate, she sighed.

"Okay, okay, I'll…relax."

Robin nodded and turned his attention to the closed door of the room. "Hey, is Beast Boy still in there?"

Raven shrugged. "I don't think so; he was for a little while, but he ran off to the training room. I think he's a little shaken up too."

"I'll go talk to him. You just try to unwind, alright?"

Raven nodded to her leader before he took off in a brisk walk for the training room, where Beast Boy was bound to be found tearing the punching bags and the other equipment to shreds.

With a heavy sigh, she levitated off of the ground and hovered towards her room, deciding to float through the door rather than have it open for her instead. When she entered, she was surprised at how serene it looked. Everything was orderly, though some of the untouched books and antiques were covered in dust. She hovered to the center of her room, glancing at her many eccentric Azarath belongings before allowing her body to drop onto the floor in front of her bed. She let her legs give way beneath her and fell forward on her stomach, smack dab in the center of her plush bedding. Her body was sprawled out oddly on the soft comforter, and she took the end of her blanket between her thumb and forefinger and pinched it aggressively.

_They're counting on me, _she thought to herself. _They're counting on me to tell them what just happened, what Cassy is, why she did what she did, who was chasing her, if she's just like me…_

Raven subconsciously pulled up the edge of the blanket and clutched it to her chest, the cuts on her palm where she embedded her fingernails beginning to sting. She clenched her eyes shut. _Then they'll want me to tell them how to protect her. Beast Boy will want me to tell him how to keep those things from getting to her, I'm sure of it. Cyborg will want to know if they can get past the security system, and Robin will want to know what their weakness is so that he could defend us. Starfire will want to know _everything, _since she's missed quite a lot. They'll want to know as much as possible. But what about what I want to know?_

_I want to know if she's one of them, and she doesn't know it. I want to know if she knows that she's more powerful than anyone could ever imagine, I want to know whether or not she's afraid of those things. I want to know if I can help, if there's a way to keep her from those disgusting things and keep her safe, keep her from feeling like she has to keep to herself. And I want to know if she could be just like me._

_But I don't know anything. And I can't do anything about it._

Raven felt a tear stream down her cheek, and before long, another came. Then another, until eventually her face was smeared with salty tears that reflected the sliver of sunlight that peeked its way through her curtains and caressed her face. Raven felt like a failure, like she couldn't do much of anything for Cassy or the ones that worried about her. Slowly, Raven could feel herself give in to the drowsy spell cast upon her by the soft blanket that she held in her arms,

much like a mother held a child.

* * *

It was one of the strangest feelings that Cassy had ever felt in her life, aside from riding a pterodactyl, of course. She felt them all inside of her, bickering amongst each other about the most ridiculous things, once even about if Cassy had a crush on the green boy.

In fact, this was the first thing that they brought up.

"I bet you that she likes that kid." she heard one of them say in a gravelly voice.

"Not even," a few replied.

"Yah huh,"

"Prove it, then!"

"Did you see her face when he called her name?"

"I don't spend my spare time looking at little girl's faces, that's just weird."

Cassy tried to say something to the obnoxious creatures, but nothing came out. She tried to move her head to see where she was among the darkness, but it wouldn't budge. She tried clenching her fists in anger, but she couldn't. She later found that she couldn't be alive. She couldn't feel her heart beating, or her chest heaving as she breathed. Was she even breathing at all?

It became clear to her that she was trapped. Cassy eventually realized that her eyes were closed, and she was suspended in something; it wasn't in the air, it was something damp, something sticky. It had the consistency of maple syrup, and she could barely make out the voices that seemed to be having a heated conversation above her. She attempted to wriggle free from the gooey substance that she noticed pulled her deeper into itself when she tried to escape. After being forcefully pulled down a good couple of feet, she gave up, finding it useless to keep on trying when nothing of use came of it. She allowed the gelatinous goop to hold her in place. She didn't dare try to free herself, seeing as to how it would only make things worse. Cassy couldn't help but wonder what had kept her alive, and then recognized the strange feeling to be another twisted nightmare.

One that she wouldn't be waking up from any time soon.

* * *

Beast Boy swung at the target again, his fist striking it right in the nose before he turned and, using his other foot, delivered swift blow to the target's neck. Not his best aim when it came to practice, but he wasn't necessarily focusing on his aim for now. He just wanted to let his anger out. He wanted to, more than anything, turn into a bear and tear those creepy creatures to shreds for what they did to her. He also wanted to forget about it.

He was standing right in front of those things, and carelessly put Cassy in danger by making himself an easy target. At least, that was how he saw it. Beast Boy began to pelt the target using his fists with all of his might, the vision of those creature's ashes driving themselves down Cassy's throat still obscuring his vision and impairing his aim.

"Beast Boy," somebody said behind him. The changeling flipped around to see the team leader looking at him worriedly.

Beast Boy saw this and feared the worst.

"What? Is it Cassy? Is she alright?" he asked, stepping forward anxiously. Robin shook his head.

"No, Cassy's still sleeping. But she's fine. What are you doing here? Cyborg and Starfire are wondering if you're okay."

Beast Boy glanced down at the floor, an overwhelming sense of guilt washing over him before he turned around and rested his head on the target.

"Its…it's my fault."

Robin shook his head, even though Beast Boy couldn't see him do so.

"No, Beast Boy, it's not."

"Yes it is."

"How?"

"I…I was standing right there. I didn't even see those…" he sighed. "I should have done something, Robin. I was _right there. _And I let them attack her. It's my fault."

"Beast Boy, I know that you see it that way, but I promise you, it's not your fault."

The green changeling ignored him and began attacking the target again. Robin straightened up. "Raven feels that way too, you know."

Beast Boy paused abruptly, slightly turning his head to better hear what else he had to say.

"But what she doesn't know is that we can only do what we can do. We can't blame ourselves if we're not capable of something, Beast Boy. Those things were invisible to us, and you wouldn't have been able to see them anyway."

At this, Beast Boy had turned all the way around and looked at his leader curiously. "But…what if it makes a difference?"

"What?"

"What if by being capable of doing something, you could protect a friend, or keep something horrible from happening? Then what?"

Robin seemed taken aback by the question, and thought hard before responding. "You…well, you still can't blame yourself, nonetheless. That's what I'm trying to tell you two. You can't make yourselves feel like this knowing that if you _were capable _of doing something, something bad could've been prevented. What I'm trying to say is that take pride in what you _can _do. You can shape shift into any animal in the _world, _Beast Boy! Your gift helped prevent dozens of criminals from taking over the city!"

Robin could see a faint hint of pride in his eyes, but it quickly diminished as he looked down. "Yeah…but it wasn't good enough, and it still happened." the leader bit his lip, irritated that Beast Boy still felt as if all of this was his wrongdoing. Finally, Robin sighed.

"Beast Boy, it's my fault."

He shot Robin a funny look.

"What? No it's not!"

"I'm the leader of the Teen Titans. Whatever happens, it's my job to make sure that you guys as well as the city are safe from harm. But seeing that Cassy is…and…and you and Raven feel like you should take the blame, it's my fault. I'm sorry."

Beast Boy shook his head. "You know what?"

"Hm?"

"I guess… I blame myself because, well, I _can_."

Robin nodded. "So do I."

"And Raven. She blames herself because she wishes she could have done something."

"So do I, Beast Boy. But what good does it do when nothing comes out of it?"

At this, Beast Boy perked his head sideways and thought to himself. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense…Robin?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think… that, well, we blame ourselves because we feel that, even though we couldn't do anything about it, we were supposed to protect that person? No matter what?"

Robin shrugged before gesturing for him to follow him out into the hallway, and the two made their way to the living room.


End file.
